Week 10 / Week 4 in Ft. Pierce (and New Jersey)

Sunday, 11/20/22 ~ Saturday, 11/26/22

     I brought Mom home from rehab on Monday. She was thrilled to be home. She even approved of the newly cleaned and organized room. She enjoyed settling into her home. We discussed the possibility of having family over once Mom is home. There is a lot of sickness going around especially at the rehab. It might be just the 3 of us and that’s OK. Thanksgiving morning came and Mom woke with a bad sore throat.

     As it turned out, Debi’s son and daughters had dinner with their dad and stopped by after they ate. They were too full to enjoy the cake I

baked. It is a variation of my Gram’s recipe. I was unable to get strawberries, but since raspberries were on sale, I used them instead. The light, yellow cake with whipped cream, dark chocolate and the raspberries was outrageous. I can say that without reservations as I ate almost half of the cake over the next 3 days. 

    Pete joined Ann and Howie for Thanksgiving Dinner at the Club. It was a delicious dinner, but no one could believe that they ran out of mashed potatoes. Pete and Howie played golf on Friday, before Pete returned to the boat.

    Mom tested positive for Covid on Friday. She brought it home from rehab. Unfortunately, Deb also tested positive, and I spent the weekend caring for both of them.

~ ~ ~ /) ~ ~   K & P

Week 9 / Week 3 in Ft. Pierce (and New Jersey)

Sunday, 11/13/22 ~ Saturday, 11/19/22

     Pete continues with a very busy work schedule. He has also found time to install the new refrigeration unit and new faucets in the galley and head. I love having a higher faucet in the bathroom. Now we have plenty of space to wash hands in that tiny sink. The one in the kitchen has the sprayer pullout from the neck. Pete managed to find one that proportionally matches the tiny galley. It looks like it has always been there. He is enjoying a lot of quiet time in the evenings spend reading and surfing the internet. He has also sent me lots of websites for info on dogs. Very interesting. . . .

 

Aren't they Beautiful!

    I have managed to post everything to the blog up to arriving at Fort Pierce around Mom (and her roommate, Angelina) visits, errands, and helping Deb with stuff around the house. When I visited the rehab, I brough milkshakes for both Mom and Angelina. It might have been 39 degrees outside, but we all enjoyed our Dairy Queens!

 ~ ~ ~ /) ~ ~   K & P

Week 8 / Week 2 in Ft. Pierce (and New Jersey)

Sunday, 11/7/22 ~ Saturday. 11/14/22

    It came as quite a surprise when the News started reports about a hurricane. The cruising groups we follow on Facebook have been suggesting boats hunker down for the heavy wind/rain event heading towards the East coast this week. The reports state that the tropic depression looks to be intensifying and will probably become a low Cat 1 before hitting the eastern coast of mid-Florida. Yep, the spegetti models like the Treasure Coast (including Stuart, Ft. Pierce, Vero) area! Monday, the boat was prepped, canvas was removed, lines doubled, extra “stuff” in the cockpit and dinghy were either removed or secured. AFTER we completed our prep, the dockmaster told us they were moving us off the T-head, where the eastern winds would be the worst, to a secure slip, between MV BOLD RASCAL and MV ARGONAUT. By this time the winds were increasing and probably in the high teens-low 20’s. That made dancing in the basin, waiting for a dock hand “interesting.” Without excitement, we secured into the new slip. Of course, it has full pilings that we needed to tie our aft and spring lines in the wind more interesting for sure!

     It was a challenge, but I managed to pack for a month in 1 carry-on and a small backpack for my flight to NJ. Pete dropped me off at West Palm Beach Airport and my sister, Deb, met me at Newark. Just before I boarded the plan, Deb called to let me know that her radiation therapy was cancelled as the disease is no longer visible in the most current MRI. It is great news, but Mom is still due to come home from rehab. We don’t know exactly when. After a medical appointment for Deb in NYC on Wednesday, I will have a week or two of not being needed. Hopefully, I will complete the blog, start an online class, visit Mom, and still have time to get her settled back in before I come home.

     Hurricane Nicole did come ashore near Ft. Pierce. Friends offered Pete a place to stay during the storm, but he wanted to remain on board as it was only a minimal hurricane. (He did pack a jump bag and put it in the car, just in case.) Sue Ann, Ray as well as Morgan and Zack, who just bought their 43-foot Catamaran 2 weeks ago, also opted to stay aboard during the storm. The winds howled and the rains pounded. Pete checked things every 2 hours, adjusting lines when needed. The surge come in after dinner and thankfully didn’t coincide with the King Tide high that was earlier in the day. Waters only inundated the docks with about 6 inches of water. He was without electricity for about 48 hours. The marina cut power as a safety. The marina staff made rounds and posted photos during the storm. The marina and boats were fortunate. There was just minor damage on 2 boats that Pete knew off. Pete was glad he was there, but doesn’t think he would stay on board in a hurricane again. Everyone returned to the dock around 8 on Thursday to check and return to their boats.

 
Rains & Winds of Nicole as she came ashore just south of Fort Pierce

 

Our great marina staff kept us posted as they checked the docks and boats

 dudring the storm. The tides rose to cover about 6 inches of the docks

     By the time the tropical depression hit NJ, it was winds of 15-18 and heavy rains for a couple of hours. Deb made some Mushroom Soup, which was perfect for the cold, rainy, and raw days. The biggest problem for me was the rain on top of the leaves. I haven’t needed to worry about leaves on the street in years. Come to think about it, I haven't seen the leaves change on the trees in years either.  I do enjoy the colors and crisp air of Autum!

    During one of my visits with Mom, she had mentioned that she has a lot of clothes that she doesn’t wear, many of which no longer fit. Deb and I decided to help her by going through all her clothes and donating 10 bags of clothes that are too big, shoes that are too small or unable to be worn due to the heals, and pocketbooks. I’m so glad retro styles are coming back. A lot of those clothes from the 70’s will be used again! The room was cleaned, the closet and drawers were organized. The next time I visited Mom, I told her we took her at her word that she wanted to go through her things and get rid of that which she doesn’t use. I promised her that we made sure we kept her favorite things and that which she uses. 

     Speaking of favorite things, Mom loves all the colors and sparkle of Christmas,  In fact, whe loves it so much, Christmas is up all year long.  They were already for Christmas when I arrived November 6th.

~ ~ ~ /) ~ ~   K & P

Week 7 / Our First Week in Ft. Pierce

Monday, 10/31/22 – Saturday, 11/5/22

This week was a mix of highs, lows, and in-betweens.

     The week started off with the beautiful trawler docked in front of us. Doug & Cathy are heading to Cracker Boys for a short haul for minor repairs and bottom painting before heading to their permanent slip, south of Stuart. I helped them with lines as they pulled away from dock. Somehow, I never realized that there was a crossing line from their aft port side to the dock. Thankfully, nothing serious happened other that an unexpected stop. The line was released, and they were on their way. Proof of how we look value our fellow cruisers. . . I was given the keys to their new car. I drove it over to Cracker Boys and then Cathy drove me over to Enterprise so I could pick up our rental.

     The hardest part of this week was saying good-by to our Bailey. She spiraled down in the past 2 weeks, and it was a very hard visit to the vet. She was such a big part of our travels, friends and most importantly, our family. She will always be part of special memories.

 

 
Our Bailey

     Of course,  work has kept Pete very busy, and the usual chores, food shopping, photo processing, etc. for me, but we also had great time meeting friends over great food. We picked up our car from Ann & Howie’s. With Howie traveling, we had dinner with Ann and Marion at Hunan for some delicious Chineese. Sue and Billy, MV ANGELINA, are settled in Stuart so of course we met them at Lola’s Seafood Deli, for their wonderful Lobster Rolls. Then we were able to catch up with Marilyn and Jon at our favorite spot in Fort Pierce, Taco Dive out by the inlet.

     We are also falling into the rhythm of being here. Dave, SV CILCIA, Sue Ann, Ray and Buddy, form the Carver, and Melissa, Mike and Maggie, MV BOLD RASCAL, are on the dock with Dave, Dianne and Coco, MV ARGONAUT, arriving in the next few days. Barbara and Mike, SV ELAN, should be here in a couple of weeks. We have a wonderful community here on our dock. There is also First Friday evening, and the Saturday morning Farmer’s Market are a staple of life here.

    Here in the Marina ~

 

~ ~ ~ /) ~ ~   K & P